Outrage in Spain after police beat Gaza flotilla activists
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MADRID: Around two thousand protesters took to the streets of the Spanish city of Bilbao on Sunday to condemn the Basque police’s treatment of activists from a Gaza aid flotilla on their return from detention in Israel. When a relative of one of the six returning activists tried to approach them at Bilbao airport on Saturday, a police officer forcefully prevented him from doing so, leading to scuffles between both sides, images from state broadcaster TVE showed. Images showed police striking people with batons and pinning others to the ground while being jeered by onlookers. Before this, activists appeared to have blocked the exit for other passengers and police tried to move them. Four people were arrested for serious disobedience, resisting arrest and assaulting law enforcement officers, the Basque regional police force, the Ertzaintza, said in a statement on Sunday. Two of those arrested were activists who had just arrived from Turkiye, TVE reported. The police force also launched an investigation into the incident. “Following what happened at the airport, the Ertzaintza internal affairs division has launched an investigation to determine whether the officers’ conduct complied with procedures,” it added. On Sunday’s march, pro-Palestinian demonstrators carried banners criticising the Basque police force and accusing the local government of being complicit with Zionism. The activists were released from Israeli custody after being detained on a flotilla trying to bring aid to Gaza. Organisers said on Friday that the activists were subjected to abuse while in Israeli detention, with several hospitalised with injuries and at least 15 reporting sexual assaults, including rape. The group included 44 Spanish nationals, according to Spain’s foreign ministry. Around 20 other activists from the flotilla landed at Barcelona airport on Saturday, where they were welcomed by supporters, including Culture Minister Ernest Urtasun. Spain was among a series of Western governments